Lake Cherry Wood
by Madam RedRose25
Summary: The Marshes are off to a fun-filled camping trip, and Kyle is invited along. But the fun is short-lived when Stan and Kyle get lost in the woods. Now more than ever they must rely on their strong friendship to pull through if they hope to be saved.
1. Can I Please?

_LAKE CHERRY WOOD_

**CAN I PLEASE?**

It was the last day of school and as soon as it hit recess, nine-year-old Stan immediately ran up to his best friend Kyle who was shooting hoops.

"Dude, what is it?" Kyle asked, dropping the basketball. Stan looked really excited about something.

"Dude, I have the greatest news. My family is going on a camping trip in July!"

Kyle blinked. "Why is that good news for me?"

"Dude, they said you could come!"

Kyle smiled. "Really? I can come along?"

"Aww, how sweet," Cartman crooned, standing nearby.

"Shut-up fatass," Kyle snapped.

"Yeah. I had to do a bit of begging but in the end, they said yes." Stan was beaming.

"That's great! I have to ask my parents though. How long will the trip be?"

"A week."

Kyle looked worried. "You know how my mom is Stan; she might not want me gone in the woods for a week."

Stan deflated. "Well, ask her anyway. I promise, this is going to be great, a lot better than the one we took when we were six."

Kyle sighed. "Surprised you brought that up. You were the one who almost died from an asthma attack up there."

Stan frowned. "This is going to be different. Anyway, ask your parents first thing tonight, okay? We're leaving July 5th."

Cartman was glaring now. "Ay! What about me?"

"What about you?" Stan asked.

"I can't come?"

"Well, no. I only asked my parents if Kyle could come. Besides, there won't really be extra room for another person."

"Especially for one as fat as him," Kyle said to Stan.

They giggled.

"Fine! I see how it is!" Cartman bit. "I don't wanna go on your gay little camping trip in the first place! I have plenty of plans for the summer anyway!" and he marched off.

"So… be sure to ask okay?" Stan said after Cartman had gone off.

It was dinnertime at the Broflovski house. Kyle looked over at his parents.

"Mom? Dad?"

"Yes bubbe?" Sheila said.

"Um… Stan's family is going camping in July and- they wanted to know if I could join them."

Sheila and Gerald looked at each other.

"When exactly will they be leaving?" Gerald asked, eating some veggies.

"July 5th."

"For how long?" Sheila said.

"A week."

"A week?" Sheila repeated eyes wide.

"Yeah." Kyle looked down now, he had a feeling his mother would say no.

"That's a long time to be going on a trip in the woods Kyle," Gerald told him fairly.

"Please Mom and Dad? It's the Marshes, I'll be fine."

"I don't know Kyle; I don't like the idea of you going camping for a week."

"But I'll be fine. Please? You allowed Stan to come with us when we went camping a few years ago."

"That was only for two days and he had an asthma attack," Gerald reminded him.

"Yeah but- but- well, it won't happen again." What else could he say to that?

"He had an even worse one back in February," Gerald continued.

"Why does that matter?" Kyle had to ask.

"The point is bubbe, we don't think you boys are responsible enough to go camping for a week without something happening," Sheila said for her husband.

"His parents will be there! The whole time! We will be _fine_," Kyle exasperated. "Please, we don't have anything planned for summer anyway."

Gerald and his wife shared a look. "Well, it's not like Sharon and Randy are irresponsible…"

"Gerald, I do not want our son going camping for a week," Sheila snapped.

Kyle was growing angrier.

"C'mon honey, you know how kids are. The more you say no, the more they'll want their way," he said quietly.

Sheila glared at her husband before turning to Kyle. "Your father and I will discuss it later."

Kyle bit his lip but he knew he had done his part, now he had to do what the hard part was, be patient for an answer. After dinner he went into the living room to play with his little brother, Ike. He could hear his parents talking in the next room, then on the phone with Stan's parents. It was hard not to eavesdrop.

"It a piiizzza," Ike babbled, holding up a cardboard cutout of one.

"Yeah, yeah," Kyle said, ears on his parents.

"Kyle- Kyle, I like jellybeans," Ike said.

Kyle frowned, trying to ignore him. Suddenly Sheila and Gerald walked in. Kyle held his breath.

"Your mother and I have talked it over, and had called Sharon just to be sure," Gerald began.

Kyle was still holding in his breath in anticipation.

"We've decided you can go," Sheila smiled.

"Yes! Yes! Thank-you!" Kyle hugged his parents.

"They will be camping at a new camping ground four hours from here called Lake Cherry Wood. It's supposed to be real nice and family-friendly. They have plenty of activities lined up. I think it's best you begin packing next week so you'll be ready, alright Kyle?" Sheila explained.

"Okay Ma." Kyle could hardly contain his excitement that night. He and Stan had to call each other and talk excitedly about the news for an hour before they had to go to bed.

Kyle spent the night at the Marshes the day before they left for the trip so they could pile into the car first thing the next morning. Everyone was looking forward to the trip, everyone except for Stan's older sister Shelley. She complained about it all that night.

"I don't want to go on a stupid trip, especially with two turd monsters around!" she yelled.

"It will be fun. You'll get to go on a couple great hikes around the lake. You'll love it," Randy told her.

Shelley rolled her eyes. It sounded more than lame in her opinion. Stan and Kyle could hardly fall asleep that night. They raced each other playing Mario Kart on their Nintendo DS and talked forever, until Sharon finally came in and told them to go to sleep since they had to wake up early. 5 AM rolled around and everyone trudged tiredly out of bed and got dressed and put their remaining luggage into the car and tiny camper attached to it that they were borrowing from a friend. Shelley told her parents several times she would spend the whole five days in the camper but they weren't having a word of it. It didn't even have a TV so she would not have been entertained. They were off on the road by six and off to a fun camping trip at Lake Cherry Wood. At eight they stopped for a rest and a quick breakfast at an old diner before going off again. They stopped for a rest each hour for the boys were too restless and had to shake off some of their energy.

"It's early in the morning, you're supposed to be tired," Sharon told them during the last stop.

Finally they saw a sign up ahead indicating that the camping grounds were coming up. Stan and Kyle cheered. Ten minutes later they came up to a large wooden post that read Lake Cherry Wood. They drove through a path with beautiful Colorado pines on the sides and other plants before finally reaching the camp site.

"Look at this; we have this whole area to ourselves!" Randy exclaimed happily when they got out.

"There _are_ other people around aren't there?" Shelley asked.

"Yes, across this area of trees. But this whole clearing is ours. And according to the map, we're only a mile from the lake."

"Boys, come on over and help," Sharon called to Stan and Kyle who had begun to throw a football around.

"Awww…" they complained.

"C'mon, my dad doesn't know how to put up a tent so we should help," Stan told Kyle.

Shelley defiantly opted to stay in the small camper once she found out she would have to share a tent with her parents. They finally gave in and agreed. Stan and Kyle would have a tent all to themselves. Once everyone was settled they thought of what they should do first.

"Let's go fishing!" Kyle cried.

"I wanna go white-water rafting. Please Mom? I've always wanted to"- Stan said, pulling out a pamphlet.

"I'm hungry Sharon," Randy complained.

"I'm _bored_," Shelley added.

"Alright, alright everyone, calm down!" Sharon called. "Now, it's almost 11:30, we should get some lunch before anything."

"Where?" Stan asked.

"There's supposed to be a real nice burger joint in town."

"C'mon you guys, this is a camping trip, we shouldn't eat in 'town.' Let's find our own food," Randy suggested.

"I am not going to be hunting deer or something if that's what you think," Sharon insisted.

"Hey, I didn't even bring my shotgun," Randy said in defense.

"I say we eat in town. Then we can walk around the shops, get to know the area," Sharon said.

The kids chimed in with agreement.

"After that can we go river rafting?" Stan asked as they began to walk into town.

"We're doing that in two days Stanley, you can wait till then," Sharon told her son.

"No I can't."

Kyle tapped Stan on his shoulder. "We're really going river rafting?"

"You bet dude!"

Kyle frowned. "It won't be- on real rapid waves will it?"

"I hope so," Stan said with delight.

"Dude, we can die! Especially if this is our first time!"

"C'mon Kyle, live adventurous for once," Stan told him.

"My idea of adventure is a long hike, not drowning."

Stan shook his head. This is just what his best friend needed, adventure. And he was a master at finding it. Kyle could be too cautious at times, a five-day camping trip would set him straight. They ate at a small burger shack called Joey's Burgers before walking around the small area.

"Would you guys like a souvenir or something?" Sharon asked the kids as they walked down the street. Randy had been dragged off when he found the local bar.

"I wanna pick something out later, before we leave," Stan said.

"Me too," Kyle agreed.

"Can I just go back to camp?" Shelley asked.

"C'mon Shelley, we just got here."

"I don't want to spend the day shopping with the turds," Shelley spat.

"Well I don't care, you aren't going to camp," Sharon snapped.

Stan and Kyle ran ahead of Sharon to see what they could find that catered to their interests. They quickly found Georgia's Sweets and hurriedly ran inside to gaze upon all the confectionary.

"Wow, those Rice crispy squares are the size of bricks," Kyle pointed out.

"And those cookies are the size of our _heads_," Stan added.

"Man, I wish we had little shops like this back in South Park. Our town's beginning to look like Denver," Kyle complained.

Sharon soon found the boys and rolled her eyes at them. "Didn't take long to find the candy shop hm?"

"Can we get something?" Stan immediately asked.

"Yeah, can we please, Mrs. Marsh?"

"We just had lunch boys."

"_Please_?" they put on their best pleading faces.

The store owner, Georgia smiled an old, knowing smile. "You can't deny a child from sweets ma'am."

Sharon sighed. "Alright fine, _one_ thing only."

How were they supposed to choose between the giant cookies, brownies, fudge, candy and ice cream?

"I promise we'll come back before we go back home," Sharon told them, reading their minds.

Stan walked out the store with a giant chocolate cookie (and a bottle of milk to go with the cookie) and Kyle, the home-made rainbow sherbet. They sat around the edge of the lake and watched people on speed-boats and Para-sailing.

"Are we gonna do that too Mom?" Stan asked.

"I don't know honey. If we can find time, maybe."

"What are we going to be doing for the next five days?" Kyle asked, licking away at his sorbet (which happened to be the tastiest sorbet he ever had).

"Oh, we have some things lined up. Tomorrow we'll be going on a hike around the lake, then one that's supposed to lead to a waterfall."

"Cool," the boys said.

"The waterfall hike is supposed to be a bit rough and rocky and steep but I think we can handle it right?" Sharon asked them.

Kyle smiled. A rough hike to a waterfall was just what he wanted to do. "I can't wait."

"And tomorrow night there's going to be a huge barbeque near the main entrance of the camping grounds where everyone camping will be allowed to come. There's going to be a lot of food and music and activities to do."

"Then after that we're going river-rafting?" Stan reminded her.

"Yes, after that, river-rafting," Sharon rolled her eyes.

"What else?" Kyle asked.

"Kayaking, and well, Dad and I have a couple fun things planned out for each of you," Sharon looked around at Stan, Kyle, and Shelley.

"What do you mean?" Stan asked.

"Oh, we found something fun for each one of you. One of us are going to take each of you out on something fun, without the others."

"Even me?" Kyle asked.

"Yes, we found an activity just for you Kyle," Sharon smiled.

Kyle and Stan looked at each other, excited. They both wanted to know what their special activities were. Kyle finished the rest of his ice cream cone as he looked on. He was sure going to have a fun time here, that was for sure. He loved spending time with Stan's family, they were the best. Sometimes he wished his parents were as out-going as they were. Knowing it was best not to think about it, he went back to camp with them and played more football. This was going to be the best summer ever.

I hope you like it so far. More 'action' to come. Starting chapters are always a bit safe. Please tell me what you think!

_Magical love: Rose, May 23, 2010_


	2. Well I Wonder

**WELL I WONDER…**

That night the Marshes and Kyle were gathered around a roaring fire making s'mores and talking under the stars. Owls hooted in the distance and crickets chirped. Kyle could not remember such a peaceful end to the day- that was until Stan was unable to breathe minutes before dinner. He was fine after a couple puffs of his inhaler but Kyle was still worriedly glancing at him now and again.

"Okay, it's my turn," Randy was saying to everyone. "What is everyone's biggest fear?"

"You have to answer first, remember Dad?" Stan told him.

"Alright, alright. My fear is getting trapped in an elevator and not being able to escape," Randy said seriously.

The others gave him blank looks.

"Really?" Stan finally asked.

"Well yeah. You know what I'm talking about Stan; people die all the time in elevators. Something goes wrong, the door won't open and soon you're plummeting to your death!"

Sharon began to giggle but tried to restrain herself.

"Oh, oh, that's funny Sharon? Well what's your biggest fear?" Randy crossed his arms.

Sharon wiped the smile from her face. "Well, my biggest fear is- that the next thing that happens to you boys"- she looked at Stan and Kyle. "-you won't come back home."

They gave her serious and worried looks.

"I mean, you've gotten into so much trouble over the years. Call it silly or whatever but, I'm afraid you won't make it back to us the next thing something happens..."

It wasn't like they ever _intentionally_ looked for trouble, but Stan decided not to look at his mother anyway. He never liked it when she looked upset. Randy cleared his throat.

"I don't have any fears," Shelley spoke up. "So I don't have anything to say."

"Oh come on Shelley, everyone has fears!" Randy said.

"Well I'm not saying mine," she said stubbornly.

"Fine, what about you boys?"

Stan and Kyle shared a look. Stan bit his lip. "Well, everyone knows what I'm afraid of. Dying, hospitals, and snakes-and things associated with all three."

"I never really thought of my fears," Kyle said honestly as he made up a s'more. "But I guess I'll have to go with dying too. I mean, it could happen any way. It's kinda scary to think about."

They shared more questions and answers- which was fun for all, even Shelley. They learned a lot of new things about one another they never heard of before. Which was of course what the boys spent the rest of the night talking about.

"Boys, boys, quiet down soon. It's almost 10:30, time to sleep," Sharon said, poking her head in the tent.

"Sorry Mom/Mrs. Marsh," the boys said together with smiles.

She looked at them before kneeling next to them. She caressed Stan's face a second before saying, "Boys, I want you to promise me something."

"What?"

"You won't go looking for your own adventures without us this time, alright? I know there is a lot to see and do and explore here but, for once, don't go wondering off okay?"

"We won't," they rolled their eyes. All their moms told them this every week practically.

"I mean it you two, do not wonder off." She kissed them both on the cheek before stepping out.

They shared a look before talking again.

"Dude, I cannot believe you still play with your old stuffed dog Ruffy," Kyle chuckled.

"Hey, at least I didn't pee my pants because I was too excited to recite my oral book report in second grade," Stan pushed him.

"At least I get better grades," Kyle challenged.

"At least I'm better in sports!"

"At least I wasn't the last in class to learn how to tell time!"

"At least I didn't turn my ass all red after sitting in a tub of paint in kindergarten!" Stan retorted.

"At least I'm not afraid of shots!"

"At least I'm not afraid of common house flies!"

"At least I've never thrown up on every single person I've ever known!"

"At least I don't have an afro," Stan said smugly.

Kyle opened his mouth but closed it. "Damn, you won."

Stan laughed. It was a while before they finally fell asleep. There was some rustling outside the tent, plus it was bright inside. Stan blinked his eyes tiredly- it was already morning. Rubbing his eyes he saw something thin and green on top his sleeping bag. He rubbed his eyes again to focus on the thing. It had a long thin body, beady eyes, and a forked tongue.

"AAAAHHHHHH!" he screamed and tripped over his sleeping bag and ran out the tent.

"Stanley, what is it?" Sharon asked, getting breakfast items on.

"Ahhhhh! Snake! Snake! Snake!"

"Where's a snake?"

"In the tent!" he hid behind his mother's legs and pointed ahead of him.

Kyle got out of the tent now. "Dude, why are you screaming?"

Soon there was laughter. Stan spun his head around and saw Shelley slapping her hands on her knees.

"Hahahaha! I got you turd! I got you good!"

Sharon pulled out the toy snake from the tent. "You did this Shelley?"

She was not the only one laughing, Randy was chuckling as well.

"It was my idea actually."

"_You_?" Sharon gasped.

"I wanted to play a little joke. Of course Shelley couldn't say no to it. Funny huh?"

Stan stood there open-mouthed at his father.

"Oh c'mon you guys, everyone plays pranks on each other during camping."

"No parent with a right mind would find it funny to scare their child half to death!" Sharon snapped, throwing the snake angrily to the ground.

"Awww, it was just a joke."

"I cannot _believe_ you Randy!"

"Why not?" he shot.

"Stanley is terrified of snakes!"

The two argued for five minutes before they got breakfast on. Bacon and eggs made in a skillet over the fire and toast. Not long after everyone began to get ready for the two hikes they were taking that day. Kyle walked out of the camper wearing shorts and a t-shirt. He breathed in the warm mountain air. It was summer, it felt great. Stan came out minutes later wearing shorts and a t-shirt as well, and had opted to take off his hat. Kyle's hat was more of a part of him than anyone's and Stan was right- at least he didn't have to worry about an afro. Sharon sprayed the boys with insect repellant before she went down a list to make sure they had everything they needed.

"You're carrying the water bottles right, Randy?"

He nodded and patted his backpack. "And I've got the map and umbrellas in case it starts to rain in here too."

"Alright, remember everyone; we can't eat anything on the hike, alright? We'll have lunch after. Dad has binoculars in his backpack in case you want to use them, and don't forget to take your sunglasses. I've got the camera if any of you want to take pictures. And Stan, I'm going to hold onto your inhaler, you might loose it," Sharon added.

Stan rolled his eyes.

"I think we're set. Let's go!"

Since the first hike was a short one and only a mile away, they walked there. Shelley was of course not pleased saying how they would be taking three hikes today instead of two. The first hike- the Lake Cherry Wood Trail, was fairly safe and uneventful. It was pretty much a circle around the lake with not a whole lot to look at. But Stan did like watching the people on the speedboats in the lake, wishing he could do that as well. The Para-sailing looked really fun. After resting and lunch, they got in the car and drove for fifteen minutes to where the next hike was located.

"This is two miles long so are we all ready?" Randy asked at the sign post that read Trail to Whitestone Falls.

"Yes!" Kyle smiled, putting on his shades.

"Boys, stick with us okay? I don't want you falling off a steep hill on the pathway or something," Sharon warned.

"Awww… can't we just be ahead of you a little?" Stan showed her a space between his first finger and thumb.

"_No_ Stanley. I know how you guys are, the answer is no," she said sternly.

The boys quickly found walking sticks, minutes into the hike. Whenever the adults weren't looking they raced up a few paces. They soon found out this was going to be a fun and rough walk. They had already tripped twice and there weren't any barriers on the sides where the trees really sloped down. Whenever Shelley saw Stan and Kyle peek over the edge her fingers twitched with the yearning of wanting to push them down, but then she'd really get it. Twenty minutes up Stan had to stop due to his breathing.

"Damn dude, you never have attacks back-to-back," Kyle told him as he took a couple puffs.

Stan shrugged as he handed back his inhaler to his mom.

"He usually has his worst symptoms in the summer and fall Kyle," Sharon explained. "With all the pollen and allergens and exposure to plants and warm air. He'll be fine, right Stan?"

He drew in a steady breath and nodded, getting to his feet. He patted Kyle on the back.

"Thanks for worrying though dude."

"Dude, ever since February"-

"It won't happen again, promise. C'mon, I think I see a great view ahead!"

Kyle hated when Stan pretended he didn't have breathing problems but hurried to follow behind him. He was right, they had reached a patch of earth where a few large rocks lay and there was the rushing river a hundred feet below.

"Boys, be careful," Sharon said nervously.

Randy had taken out his video camera now.

"Don't tell me you actually brought that stupid thing!" Sharon cried.

"You never know what you might find Sharon!" he pointed the camera to himself. "Marsh family camping trip. On a hike to Whitestone Falls now. Almost a half hour in. You can hear the river behind me. There's Shelley on the pathway rolling her eyes. Say 'hi' Shelley!"

"_Dad_!"

"There are Stan and Kyle on a rock near the edge of the cliff. Pretty close to the edge actually. Wave to the camera boys!"

"Dad, cut it out!" Stan called, turning around.

"And there's Sharon in front of me, wave honey!"

Sharon glared at her husband, pushing the camera out of her face before walking near the boys. "Okay, come down you two. We can take a picture but then we have to leave."

After a few shots of the amazing scenery and one of both boys smiling on the rock, they continued their trail. The boys looked left and right as they walked. Stan nudged Kyle suddenly.

"Ever wonder what's lying in all those trees up there?" he pointed to the right where the trees sloped higher and higher and it was hard to see what was between them.

"Yeah. Every time I see pictures of forests and mountains, I wonder what's really living in them…"

They paused for a minute to gaze up.

"What if a witch or something lives up there? And every night, as the sun goes down, she feeds off of any stranded people?" Kyle suggested.

"Don't be stupid dude; a witch wouldn't live in a mountain. It has to be some unknown animal or monster. C'mon, they discover knew species all the time. Some unknown creature lives up there, waiting to be discovered. And maybe, it never will," Stan said.

They continued to look at the dark trees, not saying anything. It was fun to imagine what could be lurking up there. Suddenly they heard a snap of a twig and something grabbed their shoulders.

"Ahhhhhh!" they cried and jumped in the air.

"Shelley!" Stan swore as he saw his sister laughing behind them.

"What's going on?" Sharon asked.

"Mom, Shelley scared us!"

"Shelley," Sharon said angrily. "C'mon kids, we shouldn't be messing around up here. It's only a matter of time before your father trips with his video camera…" it almost sounded as if she wanted that to happen.

Nothing more eventful happened the rest of the hike up. It did begin to rain lightly but only for five minutes. There was soon a rushing, roaring sound ahead.

"I hear it! I hear the waterfall!" Kyle called and hurried up the way, Stan not too far behind. They reached a signpost that read Whitestone Falls and to the left, a beautiful descending waterfall, gushing water over huge rocks. Sharon reminded the kids to be careful again when she caught up.

"Whoa dude…" Stan gasped, looking down.

"Now _this_ is what I call cool," Kyle displayed happily.

The boys continued to lean over a huge boulder as they watched the water cascade down and felt it spray on their faces.

"You boys better be careful," warned what looked to be a park ranger.

"We know," they said in union.

Stan leaned a little too far that his sunglasses slipped from his face and almost fell down to the bottom. That's when Sharon knew they had to get down- after she took a picture of the two there. Several more pictures of everyone and the waterfall were shot, and Randy had to get some good footage for his 'Marsh Camping Trip 2011' video; they rested for a while, took a drink of water before heading back down, which was even more dangerous than going up. Everyone tripped a good number of times, Stan cut his knee and Kyle bruised his elbow going down. Randy also dropped his camera twice. They finally reached camp again and were all more than thankful to rest their aching feet for a while.

At 6 PM they drove over to the gathering center at the camp site and had the weekly barbeque. Stan and Kyle, being smaller than everyone else were ready to call it a night after they ate. They just hung back and talked while everyone else met new people and played games. By 9:30, both boys were out like a light.

Sharon kissed Randy after they checked on the sleeping children.

"Ahhh, nothing is more beautiful than two rambunctious boys, asleep," she told him lovingly.

"You can say that again. The way they just ran off that one rock they were on by the waterfall- damn near gave me a heart attack," Randy exasperated. "I don't think Gerald and Sheila will be too happy if I have their son's death on video."

Sharon rolled her eyes. After one last look, the parents went to their own tent and also called it a night. Stan was nearly bouncing off the walls- or trees that was, the next morning. They were finally going to go river-rafting, something he wanted to do since he was five. But they weren't going right away- Randy was going to take Shelley out on her special trip, an amazing photographing experience of some of the plants and scenery around. That meant Stan had to wait until after lunch for the rafting. The boys were able to entertain themselves until then, Kyle not in any particular hurry in the first place.

"If you don't want to do it you don't have to," Sharon had reminded him.

"No, I want to," Kyle said earnestly. He almost felt like he had no choice since both Sharon and Randy wanted to try it out as well and no one would be available to look after him. Shelley seemed unsure too but he knew she was only going so she didn't have to watch him, which was only a good thing. They were only going for a half-day trip and were going on a class ll experience run, which made Stan upset. He wanted to experience high waves and big drops that would lift him out his seat but his parents told him he wasn't ready yet. Kyle was secretly thankful they weren't going on the huge waves he thought they were.

After what felt like to Stan a two-hour lesson on all the safety tips from the instructor who would be taking them, they were finally able to get into the raft.

"Hold up there son or you might float on without us," Randy told him as he climbed into the raft and immediately took hold of a paddle.

"Dude, I never knew you wanted to do this thing so badly," Kyle told his best friend as he took a seat next to him.

"It's just the thought that I've lived in Colorado my whole life and never got to go river rafting before. You see people do it all the time on TV or movies and stuff. I always thought it looked really fun, like one huge water slide," Stan beamed.

"If you say so," Kyle said as he buckled a helmet over his red afro.

"Alright, is everyone ready?" asked the instructor, Mark.

"Yes!" chimed the Marshes and Kyle.

"Then let's get rafting!"

It wasn't as high and adrenalin-filled as Stan hoped but he still had a wonderful time. He did enjoy the dips, however small they were, and loved the water splashing everywhere. Kyle had a good time too. The thought that they might go on life-threatening rapids had thankfully been extinguished. They had a nice dinner before calling it a day. Stan and Kyle talked excitedly about the rafting and wondering what their surprise trips tomorrow would consist of. Kyle had a feeling Stan's parents picked out something to do with animals for him, being the animal lover he was, but he had no idea what they could have found for him. But he was sure to be thankful for it, whatever it may be. Soon enough the boys fell asleep, thoughts on what the next day might bring.

_I hope you liked it._ _I decided to make this in 2011 simply because the boys are 8 going on 9 this year, according to You Have 0 Friends, so they would be 9 going on 10 next year._ _Thank-you for the reviews! Don't be afraid to leave more._

_Magical love: Rose, May 27, 2010_


	3. Not the Greatest end of the Day

**NOT THE GREATEST END OF THE DAY**

The next day did not consist of any family activities. It was Stan and Kyle's special day and so they would not be spending much time together. Since Randy had taken Shelley out for her activity, Sharon would be taking Stan along for his. Randy had already had a few beers before lunch so Kyle opted to go with Sharon as well. Sharon took both boys out for lunch before Kyle went back to camp to hang with Randy and Shelley. Well, not really Shelley… Stan had dressed in a new pair of shorts, t-shirt and went hatless again, excited about what he was going to be doing today with his mother. He loved doing things with his dad too, but Randy being Randy… there were only so many times one could embarrass their child before he called it quits. At least things with Sharon could be fun from beginning to end.

"So where are we going?" Stan asked Sharon as he placed a baseball cap on his head.

"I'm taking you on the Rocky Mountain Wildlife Tour," Sharon pulled out a pamphlet to show him.

Stan took it and glanced it over. He then turned to Kyle, eyes wide with excitement and a toothy smile on his face.

Kyle rolled his eyes in amusement. His best friend was so predictable.

"Have fun son," Randy told him, holding up a bottle of beer in farewell. He nudged Kyle. "We'll have fun here won't we Kyle?"

"Er- yeah." Kyle was just going to play with his DS for the time being and sit by the lake and watch everyone on it.

Sharon drove for around thirty minutes until they finally reached a small shack with a sign reading WILDLIFE TOURS on it. Stan held onto the binoculars around his neck in anticipation. As much as he loved animals, it was always best to see them in their natural environment, untouched by humans. The tour guide talked a few things over, told everyone the rules and such before beginning the tour. It was much like a hike except there was a greater chance to see something, especially since they had reluctantly taken along Randy's video camera. They had parked the car alongside a road and looked out to the grass ahead. They waited for awhile before deciding to drive up to see if they could spot anything there. Ten minutes into sitting Sharon tapped Stan's shoulder.

"Huh?"

She pointed ahead of her. "Look Stanley, there are a few deer ahead…"

He squinted into the distance before putting the binoculars over his eyes for a better view. "Wow!"

"Shhh. See them?"

"Yeah. Looks like they're eating. How cool…"

It wasn't the only thing they saw either; there were many bird sightings, elk, chipmunks and squirrels. But the coolest thing yet was what Stan saw at the end of the tour.

"Mom! Mom look!" he pointed the video camera in his hands ahead of him and pointed a finger. "It's a moose!"

"A moose?"

"Yeah- here"- he handed her the camera.

"Hey, you're right. Oh my goodness, that is so _cool_."

"I know. I've never seen a moose before. Look at him, he's huge!"

"You could easily fit into one of his antlers and ride around in it," Sharon stated.

All too soon the tour had to end. Stan of course wished it could last longer but Kyle still had to have a turn with Sharon as well.

"Did you have fun?" Sharon asked her son as they walked back to their car.

"Yeah, it was the best thing so far. There was a _condor_ in the sky, Mom! That was sweet," Stan beamed.

"I was hoping you'd still have a good time even if we didn't see much."

Stan looked up at her. "I'm not Shelley; I still like hanging out with you and Dad."

Sharon laughed and ruffled his hair. "Well then I guess I have four more years to enjoy you before we tire of one another."

"Guess so. Thanks Mom."

Sometimes Sharon wished her daughter was as polite as her son but she didn't dwell on it. Stan wasted no time telling Kyle and his dad what he saw on his tour. "We have video footage which is cool. And some pictures to develop. But guess what we saw? A moose!"

"A moose? How cool," Kyle smiled.

"He was huge. He was just standing there eating. There were a few birds on his antlers. It was awesome."

At 3:30 PM Sharon took Kyle out on his special trip.

"What is it?" Kyle had to ask.

"It's a small science center, not too far away."

"Science center?"

"You'll be able to learn a lot of different things about the history of the woods, the wildlife, the earth and climate of the area…" Sharon explained.

This time Kyle turned his head around to beam at Stan. Stan shook his head in amusement; his best friend was so predictable. It was a little more than twenty minutes away and Kyle couldn't wait to get his brain into some new info. Unlike his friends, he liked new information during vacation. It would be odd though, spending more than an hour just with Stan's mom. He never did that before. Sure their families were close but, this was going to be different.

"Here we are," Sharon said finally, parking at a long building with a sign reading KEATON SCIENCE CENTER. They stepped inside. They were going to the two-hour-long fast tour of the center, which was timed perfectly because they could get back to camp in time for dinner. They walked into a dark room where an employee gave a twenty-minute lesson on the history of the surrounding area.

Kyle wished he had brought along a notebook or something, he didn't want to forget any information. The man showed the room of fifteen or so people slides of what the woods and land looked like one hundred years ago before the lesson ended. Up next was an interactive part of the museum, especially designed for children. Kyle loved looking at different examples of the earth and rock and plants that had been collected over the years. He was even able to be a part of two experiments one of the workers was demonstrating to the other guests. All the while Sharon smiled at him and took pictures. He looked at her while they were walking down a hall looking at all the displays there. He couldn't believe how easy it was to hang with one of his best friend's parents. He found that he was not missing home at all.

"Are you enjoying yourself so far Kyle?" Sharon asked him.

"Oh yeah, this is great. I didn't really think you'd, well, find something that catered to my interests…"

"Well, we all know you love to learn. This was the most information-packed thing I could find."

"No, it's perfect, thanks."

Kyle suddenly had an urge to ask her something about Stan. He wanted to know something about his best friend that he would never dare tell him in person, and who better to ask than his mother? But he quickly knew that wouldn't be right, Stan would never forgive him. He just decided to enjoy what little time they had left at the small museum. Before they left Sharon asked if he wanted anything from the gift shop. He quickly found a book about the town Keaton and the Cherry Wood area. She bought if for him and they headed back to the others.

"So, did you have fun with my mom?" Stan asked as the boys lounged around in the camper while Stan's parents got dinner on.

"Actually, yeah. She's a pretty easy person to talk to."

"Yeah." Stan then frowned. "She didn't tell you anything about me did she?"

"Whoa, what do you mean?"

"Every parent does that. If someone is with their friend's parents, even for ten minutes, the parents always tell that person something embarrassing about their kid."

"She didn't say anything, really. Except…"

"_What_?"

"Well, it's nothing big. Just a few things when you were little…"

"Like…?" Stan looked peeved.

"It was nothing. Just- how Shelley almost broke your arm when you were two, how you've always had a weak stomach, then your take on some of the things we saw at the center… little things like that."

"_Why_?"

"Dude, I didn't ask her to. It was just a quiet ride from the science center, she wanted to strike up conversation," Kyle said in defense, which was the truth.

Stan looked at him suspiciously then sighed. "Guess it doesn't matter much now, nothing is more embarrassing than all the things we found out about each other a couple nights ago."

Kyle smiled in relief. Dinner was soon ready. It was hotdogs over a fire but it was great nonetheless. Nothing said camp more than hotdogs anyway. After they roasted marshmallows before they did something that really peaked their interests- tell ghost stories.

"…. And after that, the little girl was never seen again," Stan said in a hushed voice.

His family and Kyle clapped. Shelley rolled her eyes. "That wasn't scary."

"It was so!" he argued back.

"Kids, c'mon, it's not about how scary a story is," Sharon tried to reason.

"Yes it is!" Stan, Shelley, and Randy chimed in.

"Why tell a story if you can't scare someone with it?" Randy asked.

"I have one!" Kyle raised a hand. "Alright, years and years ago, two brothers were walking down the quiet dirt pathway just outside of town called Bucker Road. The friends' names were Tom and Mike. They knew they weren't supposed to be down that road after the attack of little Amy Fischer last year."

"I know where this is going," Shelley said, crossing her arms.

"You do not!" Kyle bit back. "Anyway, John and Mike had to go down Bucker Road for they had not seen their friend John for a couple days. Nobody knew where he was, his parents had been searching all day. Everyone warned them not to go down Bucker Road for months, and they had been good boys and listened. That's why they couldn't tell their parents where they were going that night. See, Tom was a weird kid and enjoyed going out at night. He liked finding trouble and doing things he wasn't supposed to, and what better time to do it than at night, when all was dark and no one could see? Plus, ever since little Amy had died on the road months ago, he was eager to see what it was all about. So the brothers stood just outside the entrance to the road, with its tall dark trees on either side, black as ink. They took a deep breath before heading in. nothing was said as they walked down the road. Just then, they heard a twig snap."

Stan forked another marshmallow over the fire as he listened to the tale.

"'Did you hear that?' Mike asked his brother. 'Yeah, maybe we shouldn't be here,' John answered. 'No, we have to find Tom. You know he wanted to explore this place for months now. Maybe he finally did it.' So reluctantly, they continued to walk. Up ahead they saw a figure standing. He did not move. They approached it cautiously. 'Hello?' John asked. The figure turned- it was Tom! 'Tom, thank goodness we found you. You're parents have been worried,' Mike told him. Tom did not seem to hear him. 'Quiet night out,' Tom spoke. The brothers shared a look. 'Where have you been all this time?" Mike asked. Tom smiled oddly. 'Oh, around.' 'Look, we can't waste anymore time here, we have to get back before everyone knows we're gone,' John said. 'Oh, I don't think you're going to be going anywhere tonight,' Tom told them. 'You see, I met someone along this road not too long ago. He needs me. He is neither human nor monster. But he needs me.'"

Stan listened intently.

"'You see Mike and John, I ran into the wrong person not long ago. But in so many ways, he is the right person. He will be able to give me what I have always wanted. This town.' 'Why do you want the town?' Mike asked. 'Because, you know me boys. I have always wanted to control something. People. And now I can. All that he asked was that I give him something in return.' 'What's that?' John asked wearily." Kyle paused before grabbing Stan's shoulder. "_'You_!'"

"Ahh!" he jumped.

Everyone laughed.

Kyle chuckled before wrapping up. "The beast that lived near that road would be very pleased with his young boy victims. Tom gladly disposed of their bodies to him before he was granted permission to be soul controller of the town. He walked down Bucker Road, hands behind his back. 'Quiet night tonight, quiet night indeed….'"

"Wow, that was pretty good," Stan noted, mouth full of more marshmallows.

"That was such a baby story," Shelley commented.

"Why must everything you say be negative?" Sharon snapped.

"Well it was! I wasn't scared."

Sharon sighed. "Alright, we have time for one more before we get to bed. Who wants to go?"

Randy grinned. "I do!"

"Alright, go."

Randy positioned himself in front of the dying fire. "This one is about this very lake. Now some people don't know if it's true or not, but there are many witnesses to it. Only, they are in no state to give details."

This got the boys excited so they huddled together to listen.

"Twenty years ago, on July 8th, three campers settled to stay the night. Now they had been lost and wandering the woods for days, with no sign of anyone else. They didn't know at the time that no one was allowed to stay here; this area was protected back then. But they had other troubles to worry about. One of the campers was allergic to the pollen in the air and had broken out into hives and needed medical treatment, but, not knowing where they were, his friends couldn't help him. So they finally took shelter under a huge tree that night during a rainstorm. It was only then that they noticed curious markings on the tree. It was covered in X's and roughly caved triangles. But they simply thought it was animal claw marks and thought nothing of it, so they slept there without complaint. But the peace was short-lived however," Randy said, staring at the boys.

They looked at each other before looking at him again.

"They heard a scream coming nearby. It came from the cave that was around fifteen feet from the tree they were sleeping under. Of course they couldn't just ignore the sound of someone screaming, so one of the three campers volunteered to take a look. He went into the cave, and never came out. The second friend did not know what to do- one of his friends was having allergic reactions to the area and the other had not come out of a cave where they heard screaming! So, he made a painful decision and left his friend under the tree to take a look. He stepped inside. It was dark and musky like anyone would expect a cave to be. He heard screaming. He showed his flashlight ahead of him as he walked. Just then- he saw a most dreadful sight- the body of his friend, and another's, decapitated."

Stan and Kyle drew in nervous breaths.

"He didn't have long to worry over this before a great tall shadow loomed over him and he became the same state as they were in. The next day, police had come to investigate the site, where family and friends thought the campers might be. They came one day too late. Under the tree was the third camper, dead. He had died because of his severe allergies to the area and had not received medical help in time. To this day no one knows what killed the other two campers and the person who was already dead inside. There were no traces of blood, or of struggle inside the cave. They just found three, mutated bodies and concluded a bear had attacked them. And now, every July 8th, people still claim to hear screaming in the woods and in the cave and still see four people, lost and confused, trying to understand just how they had died," Randy concluded.

Nobody said anything for a minute. Stan finally had to ask, "Is that really true?"

"Of course it is," Randy told him.

"No way," Kyle said.

"It's true! It happened right there at Passive Cave. It's around a mile or so from this camp site. It's on the map!"

Stan raised a brow and turned to his mother. "Mom, is Dad lying again?"

"He is," Sharon said sourly.

"I am not Sharon and you know it. Remember what the park ranger told us when we booked this trip? I asked about the history of the place and he told me three campers were stranded here fifty years ago, two of them were killed mysteriously in Passive Cave."

Everyone looked at Sharon again. She sighed. "Alright, fine, that may have happened but"-

"So it _is_ true?" Stan gasped.

"It's just a silly ghost story to tell campers here. It's not true Stanley."

"But if the ranger told you guys and if it's on the map…"

"It is not on the map," Sharon snapped.

"Oh yeah?" Randy pulled out the map of the campsite from his pocket. "Here- right here, Passive Cave." He pointed it out to the boys.

"Wow," they gasped.

Even Shelley seemed interested in the tale. "_That's_ a story," she told them.

"A true story Shelley," Randy said, smiling.

"Can we go?" Stan asked, getting to his feet.

"What?" Sharon said, surprised.

"Go see if we spot the ghosts? I mean, that's why Dad told the story isn't it? And why you booked it this week. If it happened July 8th and that's today… well we can see them. That's our last surprise activity for today isn't it?" Stan asked, excited.

"What? No, of course not! _Right_ Randy?" Sharon eyed her husband.

"Sorry Stan, it's not."

"Aw-awww… but, it has to be…"

"Naw. I just told it because we were telling scary stories. It _is_ a true story," he eyed his wife now. "But we aren't going to be doing any ghost hunting tonight."

"Why not?" Stan whined.

"It's late boys; it's already 10:30. We aren't going to go wandering through the woods for a mile to sit by Passive Cave and look for ghosts," Randy told them.

"Hey Dad, is it only tonight the ghosts come out or not?"

"No, you can see them any old day- or night that is. But you have a higher chance to see them tonight."

"I wonder if we can hear the screaming since the cave isn't too far from here," Kyle said thoughtfully.

"Well we'll just have to see won't we?" Randy said wisely, getting to his feet.

Sharon crossed her arms at him. "You better not have plans to wake the kids up at one in the morning, making scary noises and screams."

"I am not Sharon!"

"Good. Come on boys, get into your pj's and brush your teeth. It's time for bed."

"Awwww..." Stan whined again. "I wanna see the ghosts."

"If you really think we are going to sit in the middle of the woods waiting for spirits to show up…"

"Your mother's right Stan, it's time for bed."

Stan cursed angrily but got ready for bed. Minutes later Kyle got himself into his sleeping bag in the boys' tent. Stan was looking at the map.

"You really think your dad was telling the truth?" Kyle asked him.

"Yeah. My mom even agreed with him, and she never agrees with him. It's true."

"I may not be as adventurous as you dude but even I would like to see a ghost," Kyle told Stan, sitting up with his arms around his knees.

"I know. It's one of those things everyone has to experience sometime in their life. And now we won't be able to, we leave tomorrow," Stan sighed sadly.

"Already? Damnit… I'm having such a great time here," Kyle frowned.

"Me too. I love going on vacations and trips to places," Stan sank into his pillow.

"There's nothing to do in South Park that we can't do any other day after school."

"I know. Man, I hope my parents have something else planned. I wanna go to California again where mostly all my mom's family lives. It's so fun there," Stan said, thinking.

"We have to think of something to do dude. Even if it's just a trip to the zoo, a Rockies game, or water park or something. I don't want to be stuck at home for the next month and a half," Kyle told him seriously.

"Yeah. Me either."

A minute later Sharon came in to kiss the boys good-night before she closed up their tent and turned off the lamp inside. Stan looked up at the roof of the tent, arms behind his head before turning on his side.

"Psst, Kyle."

"What?"

"I was thinking of something."

"Yeah?"

"We should try and find Passive Cave."

"What? When?"

Stan got a dark look in his eyes. "Tonight."

"Tonight? Dude, we can't, your parents said no."

"C'mon, think of it. We never get to go anywhere; this may be the last chance we get to have a real spooky experience until who-knows-when."

"Dude, I am not going against what your parents say okay? It's stupid," Kyle noted.

"Come on Kyle, look at the map. It's not that far."

"We'll be wasting our time Stan."

"Why?"

"Well, because we will!"

"The story is true, both my parents said so. And it's right here on the map!"

"And just how the hell will we be able to get there?" Kyle said angrily.

"We'll just- sneak out."

Kyle's eyes went wide. "No, no no _no_. I am _not_ sneaking out in the middle of the night to get lost trying to find a stupid cave."

"We won't get lost, we have a map!"

"What if your parents find us sneaking out?"

"I know my parents dude; we just have to wait until 1 AM or so. That's when they're usually both sound asleep. Look, we'll just wait around the cave area for like, a half hour. If we don't see or hear anything, we'll head back. Nobody will know."

Kyle could not believe Stan sometimes. He really thought this was a good idea? He swore that half the reasons he ever got in trouble was because of Cartman, the other half Stan.

"Stan, that cave is in the middle of the forest. How the hell will we be able to find it?"

"I have a good sense of direction. We'll be fine," he said simply.

Kyle bit his lip, not knowing what to do. He was never one to disobey something an adult said without really thinking it trough. He had a guilty conscious. Stan's mom clearly told them days ago to not wander off; he couldn't go back on that. But on the other hand, he did want one last dose of adventure, one last adrenaline rush before they went back home tomorrow. They had a map; this forest wasn't that big was it? He sighed and looked at Stan's dark blue eyes.

"Fine, we'll go."

Stan smiled.

"But we will get there fast, stay for thirty minutes then head back. If anyone notices anything the full responsibility is all on you, got it?"

"Got it."

So at 1 AM, both boys got into their shoes and threw their jackets on. Stan packed his backpack with a couple blankets, the map, a couple flashlights, a couple water bottles, and his inhaler. They wouldn't be gone long. They poked their heads out the tent and heard the sounds of Sharon and Randy asleep feet away. Stan put a finger to his lips, nodded and tiptoed off the camp site, Kyle behind him. Stan pulled out the map when they were out of earshot from everyone and shown the flashlight on it.

"Okay, according to this, we have to keep walking north."

Kyle held out a compass. "Okay, yeah, this is north. Hurry up; I don't want to be caught."

They walked for ten minutes before Stan consulted the map again. "Hm… there doesn't seem to be any hills drawn on the map but we're at one now."

"Don't tell me we're already lost dumbass!"

"We aren't! God, I was only saying… right, we go this way"- Stan pointed left.

"Sure?"

"Who has the map?"

Kyle grumbled. "You better not have your dad's horrible map skills…"

"I don't."

Kyle looked up at the dark sky that poked between all the trees. "Looks like it might rain."

Stan shivered. "It's fine. If it starts raining we'll head back."

For some reason Kyle doubted this but continued to walk behind the black-haired boy. Kyle didn't know why he never asked Stan the directions again; he just trusted he knew where he was going. Kyle finally sighed as he rested against a tree.

"Dude, it feels like we've been walking way more than a mile."

Stan's eyes suddenly lit up and he pointed ahead of him. "There! Ahead, I think I see some rocks or something… look, it's a cave!"

Kyle's head popped up again. "It is?"

Stan climbed up a rocky hill with difficulty. "It is!" he called down to his friend. Kyle quickly caught up behind him. "See? I told you we'd find it."

"I guess you're right. It's Passive Cave, it has to be."

"Ready?"

Kyle nodded. The boys took out their blankets and sat near a log, hoping for a truly spooky experience. The air grew only colder as they waited and the wind really began to kick up. Tears welled in the boys' eyes as the wind whipped at their faces. Stan kept his blanket over his nose and mouth so he'd hopefully not begin having difficulties breathing. Kyle could feel himself nodding in and out of sleep.

"Stan, how long has it been?"

"I dunno."

"Where's your watch?"

"I thought you had it."

"What? You do!"

"Shit… well, well I guess we should head back. It's"- just then thunder rolled above them. And that's when it began to rain.

"Great, just great, real fun this is," Kyle bit.

Stan put their blankets in his backpack again so they would stay dry. He got to his feet. "Guess we should head back."

"You think?"

"Hey, you wanted to come too Kyle, it's not my fault," Stan spat.

Kyle was too tired to argue.

"Which was is east?"

Kyle took out the compass again and shown a flashlight on it. He moved it around but the needle did not budge. "What the-?"

"What is it?"

"The needle- it won't move."

"Huh?"

"Look, it's not moving. I can't tell which way we need to go."

"Has- has it been that way the entire time?"

"Well I don't think so, I don't know. You kept saying go 'north' and well, we went north."

Stan cursed. "Fucking Damnit! We've been going the wrong way all this time? That stupid thing hasn't even been working? Then this cave can't be Passive Cave! Look, that weird tree isn't even around!"

Kyle shook the compass but it didn't do anything. He gave up and put it in his pocket angrily. "Great, now we're lost! Lost in the middle of the woods, in the middle of the night and it's raining!"

"Well we have to get back to camp before my parents find out we're gone."

"Stan, they probably already know we're gone! And they have no way of knowing where we went! This is all your fault!"

"_My_ fault?"

"'Hey, let's go out and go ghost hunting Kyle, my parents will never find out Kyle,'" Kyle said in a mimicking voice.

"Hey, you wanted to go just as much as I did. You trusted me," Stan argued.

"And fat load of help that was."

Stan gritted his teeth and bunched his hands in fists. "Let's- let's just try and find our way back."

There was a great flash of lightening and it poured harder.

"It's no use man; it's raining cats and dogs now. There's no way we can find our way back in this weather."

"So now what?"

Kyle looked around and saw the small cave they were by. He sighed. "Let's wait it out until morning. Once it's daytime we can try and head back."

Stan's eyes widened in shock.

"It's not safe to walk around lost when it's raining like this. It'll be easier to travel when it's lighter."

Stan stood there, getting poured on by the water falling from the sky. He didn't know what to say or do. The branches of the tree they were by swayed dangerously. Stan drew in a deep breath but nodded and so both boys took shelter in the small cave. Stan held up the map and then sighed again. It was sodden from the rain. He tossed it aside, now useless. They took off their coats and put it deep in the cave in hopes they would be dry enough to wear the next day. Thankfully the two blankets were fine so they wrapped their small bodies in them and lay down.

"Dude, we are going to be in so much trouble," Stan said after a few minutes.

"I know," Kyle agreed bitterly.

_Well I hope you liked this chapter. Please do review and make me a happy little beaver! Thanks._

_Magical love: Rose, June 1, 2010_


	4. More Than Just Lost

**MORE THAN JUST LOST**

The thunder rolled on and Sharon kept tossing and turning in her sleeping bag. Like her son, it didn't take much for her to awaken. She sighed and finally sat up. Randy felt her get out of her sleeping bag and to her feet.

"Uuuhh? What are you doin'?" he yawned.

"It's really pouring out there. I'm going to check on the boys and make sure they're warm enough."

"I'm sure they're fine."

She looked at him. "If the floor becomes flooded we're going to have to sleep in the camper and car, even if Shelley doesn't like it. I'll be right back."

She walked out with an umbrella to the boys' tent, only to find it- empty. She looked around it before going into the camper.

"Ugghhh, Mom, I'm trying to sleep," Shelley complained from the camp bed in the back.

"Shelley, do you know if they boys came in here?"

"No."

After checking the camper she looked in the car, only to find it empty too. She then began to panic and hurried back in the adults' tent.

"Randy! Randy, get up now!"

"What? I wanna sleep too you know."

"Randy, I can't find the boys."

"Huh?"

"I can't find the boys! They aren't in their tent or the camper or the car!" her voice shook.

Randy finally sat up. "Impossible. Where else would they be?"

"I don't know but we are going to look for them now. Get your coat on, umbrella and flashlight. They can't have gone far…" although she was saying this only to try and calm herself.

Irritated, Shelley was forced to come out and look around for stupid Stan and Kyle too. They searched in the surrounding area but it was really difficult to see much or navigate through the trees. Sharon finally went into the camper, shaking mad now, too nervous to look anymore.

"Boys? BOYS?" Randy kept calling but with the howling wind it would be impossible for them to hear. He finally deserted the trees and met with his family in the camper. "I couldn't find them," he said.

"I don't understand it, where would they be?" Sharon said eyes wide.

"Now- now calm down honey, they can't have gone far," Randy tried to comfort her.

"How do you know? There isn't any sign what happened to them! They could have been kidnapped or injured or taken away by a bear or something and we have no idea what happened!"

"C'mon, I'm sure we would know if they were caught by a bear," Randy said with half a smile but she didn't find it amusing one bit.

"What are we going to do? Why would they willingly leave if that's what they did? I can't sleep now, knowing they're missing!" Sharon said wildly.

"Calm down honey, we have to calm down," he put his arms on hers.

She got to her feet. "Calm down? Stan and Kyle are _missing_ Randy!" she sank back in the seat again breathing quickly.

Randy didn't know what to say or do. "Let's just- wait it out Sharon. See if they turn up in the morning."

She looked at him as if he were mad.

"Hey, I know where they might be. I'm sure they're at Passive Cave."

"Why the hell would they be there?"

"Well, Stan got upset when he found out we wouldn't be going there. Knowing him, he wanted a bit of fun and convinced Kyle to come along. I can't find the map either so I bet they have it with them. They're probably getting a fun thrill right now and they'll come back in the morning, acting as if it never happened. They do things like that all the time," Randy said convincingly.

Sharon opened her mouth but closed it. "I- I swear it Randy, if that isn't where they're at right now, and they don't turn up in the morning"- she looked ready to rip his head off.

"Then we can panic," he said, hands held in defense. "In the mean time, it's safest to sleep in here until the rain stops. Come on, I'll take the driver's seat if it'll make you happy…"

Sharon didn't answer, just softly sat into the sofa. She doubted she would be able to get any sleep now.

Around eight in the morning the rain had died down and Stan blinked his eyes tiredly. He quickly turned to Kyle and shook him awake.

"Dude, the rain stopped!"

Kyle poked his head out. "Good, now we can try and find our way back. Come on."

Their jackets were still pretty wet so they wrapped their blankets around them and walked out. They had no idea where to go, all they knew was camp was back east and with no compass, they could only guess which way that was. Hoping they were making the right decision, they turned left and began their trek. Kyle looked behind him as he led the way. Stan was looking at the ground with a worried expression on his face.

"What?" Stan asked.

"I know that look," Kyle told him.

"What?" he asked again.

"You're having troubles breathing aren't you?" Kyle didn't know why he sounded so angry.

"What?" Stan said a third time. "No I'm not."

"You are so! I've known that look since we were four!" again, why was he getting so fumed over this?

"I'm not, really. I'm just upset at this situation. I just wanna return back to camp. I have this remember?" he held up a small blue canister in his hand. Kyle glared at the inhaler but began to walk again. He didn't know why he was so angry with his friend but he was. This was his entire fault, this was his idea. But it was best to not play the blame game now and just try to get out of these woods. The walked more and more, hoping they were going east. Unfortunately for them, they were walking north.

Sharon shook herself awake. _So I did get some sleep_… she then got to her feet and looked around. "Boys? B-boys?" she ran outside to see their tents a mess but no sign of Stan or Kyle anywhere. She woke Randy up violently.

"They haven't come back Randy!" she shouted.

They went outside together.

"Maybe there's a clue as to what happened to them. I mean, they had the map, they must. I can't find it anywhere. Why else would they have the map other than to find Passive Cave?"

The only thing they could come up with was that Stan's backpack and inhaler were missing as were two blankets. They looked around the surrounding area again before deciding they had to talk it up to the park ranger's headquarters and put out a search. Randy thought it was too premature to form a search party already but Sharon was in her own mind and was too determined to find out _some_thing. The first ranger they came in contact with got a picture of the boys and sent out a couple others to begin looking.

Meanwhile, the boys had to stop for a break after three hours. The air around them was cold and they could tell it was going to rain again sometime that day. Stan could feel himself shaking and getting warm so he took off his cap and set it beside him before taking his inhaler out and breathing in a couple puffs. It was almost lunch time and with no breakfast, he could feel himself getting lightheaded. Just then the wind began to kick up and before he knew it, his hat sailed off and away from him.

"No! No!" he chased after it for a short while only to see it get carried up high into a tree by the wind. He made a move to climb it but Kyle held him back.

"Dude, forget about it."

"I need my hat!"

"It's just a hat Stan."

"You're the one who wears your hat more than any of us! Don't tell me 'it's just a hat'!"

"You need to stay calm after you take your medicine Stan, you can't go climbing a tall tree right after."

Stan kicked a rock. "God _Damnit_! Don't tell me what to do Kyle! Argh, I wanna get out of here!"

Kyle was tempted to yell at him again but stopped himself. "Let's just continue to walk, before you know it we'll see your parents looking at us like angry bulls. We'll be in trouble, but safe, and get back home."

Kyle began to walk again. Stan took one last look at his beloved hat, twenty feet above him before following. He knew he shouldn't get too upset, he had nine other pairs of the exact hat back at home but right now, he was getting too annoyed to think normally. They walked on and on until around 5:30 in the evening when they realized they had to stop for the day and rest up. Their legs and feet were killing them. They took shelter under a giant rock amongst a slopping hill of other rocks. It had rained lightly on and off the past couple hours. They were starving at this point.

"What- what are we going to do for food if we're stuck here another day?" Stan asked Kyle.

Kyle looked up from cleaning mud off his shoes. "I don't know. I guess, if we find an animal, we're going to have to kill it."

Stan frowned. "What kind of animal?"

"I dunno, whatever we see. A bunny, a deer…"

Stan looked dejected.

"Dude, if we have to eat, we have to eat. We can't just survive on water," he indicated the water bottle in his hand. They had collected as much water from the rain as they could that day.

Stan moaned and hit his head on the rock, closing his eyes. "I cannot _believe_ we're in this mess."

"Well, you were the one who wanted to hunt for ghosts," Kyle had to finally say.

Stan looked up and opened his eyes. "You wanted to come as well Kyle so don't you dare put all the blame on me!"

"I told you if something happened to us you would take full responsibility! And you agreed!"

"You only said if my parents found out I would take responsibility."

"Well I bet you by now your parents have found out," Kyle said bitterly.

Stan opened his mouth then shut it. He then jumped when he felt a beetle on his head and flicked it off. "God I wish we had some bug spray!"

"I wish we were home," Kyle put out.

Stan gritted his jaw so tight he could have broken his teeth, and wrapped his arms around his knees. "How are we going to sleep? What if it rains? Our coats are still damp, we can't get the blankets wet either."

Kyle shrugged. "Nothing we can do."

The boys didn't say much as they watched the sky ahead grow darker and darker. It was even more difficult to fall asleep that night. All around them they saw nothing but black and the outline of the trees. They didn't know if anyone or anything was masked in the dark. Every time they heard a noise they shown a flashlight around, but nothing was ever seen. They knew they had to save the batteries of the lights so they turned it off finally. They couldn't hide their fear that night. They laid down almost nose-to-nose holding hands, just to make sure they knew the other was still there. They were nothing but two little boys, lost in the woods and too afraid to sleep.

Back at the camp grounds, Sharon was having just as difficult a time falling asleep as the boys. There were no signs of them anywhere that day and the few rangers who went looking said it wasn't safe to search again that night in case it began to rain again. Sharon sat in the camper, blue eyes wide with fright, not knowing where Stan and Kyle were. She didn't know what to think or do.

The sun peaked through the evergreens the morning of July the 10th. Stan rubbed his eyes. Had he actually gotten some sleep? He woke Kyle up.

Kyle looked around with tired green eyes. "I don't know about you but I'm still exhausted. Look, it's morning now, we can see things now. Let's- let's try and get a couple more hours of sleep before we try again, alright?"

Stan sighed and snuggled into the rocky earth again. "Fine."

Two hours later the boys put their blankets and water bottle away before going off again.

"I think what we need to look out for is a road. If we see a paved road then there has to be people nearby," Kyle told Stan, five minutes into walking.

The weather did not let up throughout the day. An hour in it began to rain and the wind was fierce. All their shouts of 'hello? Can anyone hear us?' fell on nothing but trees.

Back at camp the search had only grown. The police were now involved and a few more people were now heading the hunt for two missing boys. A police officer walked up to Sharon who was sitting in a chair at the ranger's station, shaking like mad, the cup of coffee in her hands jittering horribly.

"Mrs. Marsh, we need a detailed description of the boys," Officer Daniels asked.

She appeared to not have heard him.

"Sh-Sharon," Randy nudged his wife.

She looked up.

"Please ma'am, we need a detailed description of the boys beside what they were last seen wearing."

"Kyle- Kyle is 4'3" I believe. I'm not s-sure how much he weighs. Maybe around 65 pounds. He has a red afro and green eyes and sort of a sharp nose."

Officer Daniels nodded and wrote this down. "Any definable marks on his skin?"

Sharon and Randy shared a look.

"A birthmark. Yes, I know he had a birthmark on his right arm. Oh, and he has an outie belly button. I know that might help."

He nodded again. "And your son?"

At this Sharon's eyes glassed over. "My- my Stanley is 4'4" exactly, and he w-weighs exactly 64.5 pounds," she sniffed. "He has short black hair and my- my eyes. D-deep, dark blue eyes."

"Any scars or marks on his skin too?"

Sharon hiccupped now. "He has a scar on his forehead- right here on the hairline"- she made a dash mark across the left side of her hairline. "From hitting his head when he was six. He also has a scar on his left shoulder. He- he tripped a few days ago on a hike, he should have a cut on his knee too."

She covered her face with her hands now, trying hard to hold it together. It had only been one full day; they still had time to find them.

"Thank-you Mrs. Marsh. Don't worry, we're going to find the boys," Officer Daniels reassured her, patting her shoulder before giving the descriptions to the other police.

Stan and Kyle traveled through the trees, rocks and uneven ground before night fell and it was dark again. By now their shoes were caked in mud and they had to stop frequently to clean them. Their clothes were also being torn and ripped from the hard walking. They found a tree and sank against it, out of breath. Stan reached into his pocket for his inhaler to put back in his backpack, when he felt nothing. He checked his other pocket and again, nothing. That's when he saw that there was a large rip in his pocket and he panicked. He began to grope around the ground but couldn't find it. Kyle drew his water bottle from his lips to watch Stan.

"Something up?"

"Dude, I had it. I _had_ it!"

"Had what?"

"My inhaler! I had it and now I can't find it!"

"Huh?"

"It was in my pocket Kyle and now it's not!" Stan cried as if he was hiding it from him.

"Well, well let's check the ground a bit, see if we find it."

"No shit!"

"Hey, _I_ didn't lose it," Kyle barked.

Stan began to look around frantically with Kyle's help. The sky was darkening and it was getting harder to see.

"We'll look more in the morning," Kyle told him.

"What?"

"Do you need it now?"

"N-no, but what if I do need it Kyle? What if I do? Oh my god, what if I wake up in the middle of the night and can't breathe? Oh my god…" Stan began to panic.

Kyle turned Stan around to face him. "You have to calm down Stan. Really. You're never the one who gets worked up on things."

"But"-

Kyle shook him viciously. "Snap out of it!"

Stan blinked blue eyes at him before shaking him off.

"How did you lose it anyway?"

"There's a rip in my pocket. Oh god, it could have fallen out anytime, it could be anywhere…"

Kyle bit his lip; it was time to be strong for his friend now. He sat him back against the tree. "Calm down Stan, come on dude. If you aren't having troubles now, no use working yourself up."

Stan drew in a deep breath but nodded. "Sorry."

Kyle sighed as he fell onto the tree as well. "I am so hungry and exhausted…"

"Me too…"

Once again they sat and watched the sky grow darker and darker and the sounds of all the night critters awaken. Back at the campgrounds Randy was doing all he could to calm his wife down. Not long ago the police had informed Mr. and Mrs. Broflovski their son was missing. To say they were beyond furious was an understatement. Sheila wanted to talk to Sharon on the phone and accuse her of this but Randy had relieved his wife of this, she was defiantly in no state for Sheila's usual nagging now. They were going to come to the grounds the next day. He was afraid Sheila might rip Sharon's head off when she saw her in person. Randy handed his wife another cup of coffee and wrapped a blanket around her.

"It'll be alright Sharon, I know it," he tried to tell her.

She gulped. "It's- it's happening. What I said. My worst fear… oh my god, my worst fear is happening…"

"Hey, it's only been two days, there's plenty of time for them to show up."

"Only two days? How can you say our son has been missing for '_only two days'_?" she shrieked.

Randy tried another approach. "The boys have been in trouble like this before. They always return."

"Don't you get it Randy? My worst fear was that this _exact_ thing would happen again and the boys wouldn't turn up! Ever! I- I jinxed myself, our son will never return. The Broflovski's son will never return. It's my entire fault, all my fault for voicing my worst fear…" Sharon sobbed.

He knew she had a point so he backed off. He sat next to Shelley.

"Shelley, why don't you say something to your mother."

"What?"

"Reassure her okay?"

"_No_."

Randy had her face him. "Look, I know you don't like your little brother but I know you love your mother enough to make her feel better. So go do it," he ordered.

She rolled her eyes and walked to her mom. "Mom?"

Sharon looked at her with swollen eyes.

She sighed and touched her arm. "I- I'm sure Stan will show up."

Sharon sniffed and hugged her daughter to her. "Oh Shelley, oh, I hope so…" and she squeezed her for many minutes.

Shelley would have gotten out of her arms long ago but she knew just what her mother was feeling. Stan was missing, for good. She may have indeed jinxed his return. To know her little brother may never come back home… was the untold fear of hers she dared not to tell anyone during that campfire. At 9:00 that night the police had come into the ranger's station with something in his hands.

"Mrs. Marsh, can you identify this?"

Sharon looked up to see the man holding up a worn red and blue hat with a poof ball. She numbly took it in her hands and stared at it.

"We found it hanging in a tree."

To have her son's hat in her arms but not her actual son was too much, she broke down. Randy hurried over and hugged her, saying the while, "That's- that is our son's hat."

The officer nodded. "We're making progress."

The search had been called off a half hour later. It had begun to rain again and it would be too dangerous to search in such bad weather. Back where the boys were… Stan had awoken from his doze when he felt raindrops on his face.

"You've got to fucking me kidding me!" Kyle cried.

Stan sat up and shivered. His coat was wet from earlier as was his blanket, and he had no hat. They sat there against the old tree getting poured on. Kyle quickly put his hat inside Stan's backpack so he could have at least one dry item.

"Now w-what are we gonna do?" Stan asked, hugging his wet body to himself.

Kyle opened his mouth to answer when he suddenly saw something ahead- a pile of rocks with a dark opening- a cave. He then saw the tree they were at had a large opening underneath.

"Stan…"

"What?" Stan was in no mood to care about anything at this point.

"I think- yes! Look!" he held up a flashlight to the tree. It was covered in funny markings.

"Passive Cave!" they said together.

But Stan was not excited; on the contrary, his eyes were wide with fright.

"Pretty neat huh?" Kyle commented.

"Oh shit, oh shit oh shit oh shit…" Stan kept repeating.

"_Now_ what?"

Stan put his head in his hands. "It's just like the story Kyle!"

"What is?"

"This- our situation now!"

"What? No it's not."

"It is so butthole! It's raining, and we're lost. Lost campers finding shelter at a tree by Passive Cave. And it's raining. Oh shit!" Stan gasped again.

Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Kyle! I'm gonna die here!"

"What on earth are you talking about?" he asked impatiently.

"I'm allergic to the area. I had two attacks before we even were lost! I'm gonna have an attack tonight and by morning, I'll be dead!"

Kyle couldn't believe the word's coming out of Stan's mouth.

"I lost my inhaler. It's fate, I lost it because I was meant to die like that one camper did. Oh god…" Stan had finally had it, tears filled his eyes and he began to cry.

Kyle had never see Stan go from bad to worse so quickly. He truly did hate when he lost control. He was the one who got worked up on things, not the other way around. _Time for some good ol' reassurance_… Kyle thought bitterly. He grabbed hold of Stan's shoulders.

"Stan, Stan. Dude! Snap out of it!" he slapped him across the face.

Stan was too shocked he did this that he listened.

"This isn't like the story okay?"

"It's just like the story!"

Kyle sighed. "Well, alright, so it is. The point is that it doesn't mean anything. It doesn't even mean it's true. Just because there were witnesses and your dad said it doesn't mean it's true. This cave could be here for any number of reasons. It doesn't mean anything. But you freaking out right now isn't helping. I know you lost your inhaler, and chances of finding it are pretty slim. But both you and I know when something like that happens the last thing you need to do is panic. Panicking will make you have difficulties breathing, and then you really _are_ screwed. For now, just- try and calm down. I know you have allergies here but, don't think on it. C'mon Stan, it's you, you don't do these things. Everyone knows the moment you start to worry; we're all in deep shit."

Stan looked at him, shocked at his little speech. But it made sense so he nodded. "Alright, I'm calm."

"Good. Now c'mon," Kyle nodded to the cave.

Stan's eyes were wide again. "You really think we should go in there?"

"We can't stay outside another night. It'll be safer inside the cave. I promise you we won't be decapitated."

Stan wasn't so sure. The story had to be true so who was Kyle to say it wouldn't happen again? Kyle chuckled.

"You're really sacred aren't you?"

"No," Stan snapped. "Let's go."

They dragged their tired bodies inside the dark cave. It was fine so far. But just to be safe they decided to stay near the entrance if they needed to run off. They decided to leave one of the flashlights on all night just in case. They watched as the rain fell outside, not what one would expect in July but then again, this was Colorado, weather was unpredictable. The boys didn't say anything for a while. Kyle couldn't ever remember his stomach hurting this much before. If they didn't get some food fast he didn't know how much longer they would last. How he wished he never fallowed Stan out two nights ago. They would have been able to go kayaking on the last day and be home, safe and warm in their beds at this point. Stan frowned as he shook the water out of his wet hair. He kept looking at Kyle, angry with him but he didn't know why. Maybe it was because he kept putting all the blame on him. It was as much fault his as it was Kyle's, he came along too.

"Well this is fun," Kyle finally said flatly, casting the light from the flashlight around.

Stan looked up. "Are you fucking serious?"

"Hey, you're the one with a warped sense of fun dude, you tell me."

Stan marched over to him. "For the last time I didn't get us into this mess okay? If anything it's your fault."

"_My_ fault?"

"You didn't even check to see if the compass was working!"

"You're the one who can't even read a damn map!"

"You're the one who keeps making useless suggestions. Let's go this way, let's do this. It hasn't done jack shit!" Stan screamed.

"Well what are your brilliant solutions then Stan? Huh? How do we get out of this mess now?"

Stan growled. "I don't know okay? All I know is if I don't get food soon and have an asthma attack I'm as good as dead."

"People think I'm boring and not adventures? It's because of you. You're the one who thinks it's a good idea to risk his neck doing stupid things all the time, not caring of the consequences."

"I'm not irresponsible!"

"Oh yeah? You were the one who almost drowned in the middle of the ocean trying to stop Japanese from killing whales! You're the one who was banished from town for not voting even though you had plenty of chances. You're the one who almost died from a stupid disease trying to save some calves from becoming veal! You're the one who once tried to go into the deep end of a pool on a raft when you didn't know how to swim, just because your sister threw your stupid stuffed dog in it. You're the one"-

"Alright, I get it Einstein!"

"_I'm_ responsible okay? I look out for myself. I _like_ washing my hands and brushing my teeth and bathing. I _like_ taking directions and proving my worth. I am not you Stan; I do not just 'let things go' without a care. This is not my fault because if it was I wouldn't have even come up with this stupid ghost hunting idea in the first place!" Kyle screeched the last part.

The two faced each other, both wore steaming faces. Stan finally walked from him and stepped out the cave.

"Where are you going?" Kyle demanded.

"I don't want to sleep in a cave with someone who keeps insisting I did this on purpose."

"You're sleeping outside?"

"Under the tree, like that one camper did."

Kyle opened his mouth then glared. "Fine, go ahead, see if I care!"

"I will!"

"Good!"

"I'm going!"

"Go ahead."

"Don't expect me to come back in."

"I'm not."

Stan gritted his teeth in anger at his best friend again before walking back out into the rain and slumping under the old tree. It was going to be one long night…

_I hope you liked the chapter. Please click on the 'review' tab and send me some words! Thanks!_

_Magical love: Rose, June 4, 2010_


	5. I Just Wanna go Home

**I JUST WANNA GO HOME**

How long Stan sat under the tree he didn't know. He just hugged his wet body to him, not remembering the last time he felt this cold. If he had his hat he would at least be a tiny bit warmer. Drops of water ran down his lank hair, both his coat and blanket useless and dirty. _Stupid Kyle… does he really think I wanted to put us in this mess? All I wanted was a scary experience, this is too much. What a dumbass_… Stan thought savagely.

Back in the cave, the same thoughts were going on in Kyle's mind as he walked back and forth inside. _What was he thinking? Like I had anything to do with this? At least I was trying to find a way out of here unlike him. What a stupid, stubborn kid. _Kyle stopped his pacing and sat down again. He had to save his energy, no more walking unless he really had to. He crossed his arms over his chest angrily as he thought, listening to the rain fall steadily out in the dark night. Finally a realization came over him. He lowered his arms slowly and looked back out. It was really dark and wet outside and his best friend in the whole world was out there, even if it was his own choice. He then thought of their situation before sighing and getting to his feet and walking out.

Stan turned around when he felt Kyle touch him. "What do you want?" he asked.

Kyle sighed. "Look, can we just drop this blaming game now? Can we just admit we both made mistakes that led us in this situation?"

Stan looked at him wearily.

"Look, I admit it was my fault for not making sure we had a working compass. And I know I promised to bring along my watch too but I didn't."

Stan rolled his eyes. "It was my fault for well, being here in the first place. I wanted to find this exact place. Now we're here and well, I'd rather be at home more than anywhere…"

Kyle grinned. "C'mon, get back in the cave."

Even if they had forgiven each other, the story of the campers his dad had told still rung in his head. He never felt so vulnerable before than on this excursion through the woods. Kyle seemed to have read his mind.

"Stan, you know you can't stay out here. It's still raining and you're soaking. If you stay out here any longer you really are bound to get sick or have an attack or something. You have to get inside with me."

Stan sighed. "Yeah, you're right."

Kyle led Stan back inside. Stan took off his coat and shook his wet head like a dog. There really wasn't anything he could do to get warm, everything was wet, and he wasn't about to strip naked and sit inside a cave or he'd really freeze. Kyle's blanket was still semi-dry so they decided to take turns using it. They rested their heads on the floor of the cave, Stan with the blanket first.

"Remember dude, if you start to feel sick or can't breathe or break out in hives or anything, tell me," Kyle told him.

Stan nodded. Kyle knew he was telling the truth and so together the fell into yet another uneasy sleep in nature. Morning came with a bright burst of sunshine in the cave. But that wasn't what woke Stan. His chest had been feeling tight the past ten minutes and his skin was itching like mad. He regretfully woke Kyle.

"Hm… what is it dude?" he slurred. "Hey, look, the sun's finally out!" he said happily, noticing the change in weather.

"Kyle, my chest hurts," Stan told him.

"Huh?" Kyle sat up and looked at him.

Stan drew in a breath but it sounded more like a whistle. "My chest hurts. And look"- he showed him his legs, raised skin shown on them in many different random shapes.

Kyle kneeled next to him and looked his legs over. "Hives…"

Stan nodded. Kyle knew, yet again, what was on Stan's mind (how was that?) and went into his role as designated brother.

"Alright, first things first, don't panic."

"Kyle"-

"Don't panic Damnit! It'll only make things worse."

Stan began scratching at his neck where a few funny-looking bumps were beginning to form too. Kyle bit his lip, trying to think of plan of action. One thing did pop in his mind.

"From now on, let's stay in here alright? I know there are people looking for us and have been looking for days. It'll be easier for them to find us if we stay in one place. Plus, since this is Passive Cave, it means camp is only a mile away. And I'm sure there are people there right now, waiting to see if we turn up. We really couldn't have found a better place to bunk," he said with a slight smile.

Stan agreed. "I don't think I can walk another day anyway."

"I know what you mean. We'll just stay here until we're found, which has to be soon. It has to. Then this horrible experience will finally be over."

Stan looked troubled beside his allergic reaction. "Man, I can only imagine- what my mom is feeling now… she was really serious when she- said to not find our own adventures."

Kyle shrugged. "Well, now you know what I feel. My mom is probably worried sick too. I'm sure she knows I've been missing the past two and a half days."

"I don't know if she's- going to murder me when we're finally- found, or hug me to death," Stan thought, whistling sounds coming from him through each breath.

Kyle was happy Stan seemed to think they were going to be found now and not die like the campers in the story. They set their coats and blankets on the top of the cave so the sun could dry them throughout the day. The warmer weather was a nice welcome but not for Stan. Weather changes were never good news for his health and as the day died his breathing only worsened. He tried hard not to panic but the situation they were in was a lot worse than his last attack in February. Night fell and Kyle looked over to Stan who sounded worse than earlier.

"Kyle…" he whimpered, tears filling his eyes.

Kyle went into action. "Calm down Stan, just calm down…"

Stan shook his head.

"You have to do it dude. Come on, deep breaths, deep breaths."

Stan drew in a ragged painful breath. "I can't…"

"You can dude. You can because you _have_ to." He firmly took hold of Stan's arms. It felt like he had done that many times during this trip.

"I've been- doing it all day. I never did this- all day with-without medicine."

"You are not- I repeat _not_ going to crumble now Stan, do you hear me? We've been through too much shit now to have you do this," Kyle said fiercely. "Now more than ever you have to learn how to calm yourself down. Remember the methods your doctor told you, your parents. They tell you these things for a reason. So you can save yourself. C'mon Stan, do it."

Stan coughed trying to breathe. "Hurts… it's hard."

"I know but for me- for your parents, calm down. Your mom is worried sick this very minute, wondering where you are. She's hoping to find you and hug you and everything dude. You can't let her down Stan. You can't."

Tears prickled Stan's eyes. Kyle helped him lie down and he gave him the dryer of the blankets. It sounded as if Stan was choking almost.

"Hey, I have an idea Stan. Let's talk. Let's just talk okay? We can't fall asleep though. If you fall asleep well… it's best you don't."

"What about you?"

"I'm not going to fall asleep either. If I do then I won't be able to wake you up if you sleep. C'mon, let's talk, keep each other awake…"

Stan drew in a long painful breath. "I'm so hungry…"

"Me too." A smile spread on Kyle's lips. "If you were home right now, what would you want to eat more than anything?"

Stan thought. "KFC."

Kyle laughed.

"Extra crispy strips… or my mom's meat-meatloaf. And- and chocolate cake. And Dr. Pepper."

"I want a burger. A big fat juicy burger. And a chicken salad. And applesauce. And a strawberry milkshake," Kyle thought.

Stan licked his lips. "A milkshake sounds so good." He then chuckled. "Man, I'd rather be any-anywhere but here."

"I know."

Stan laughed again. "I'd even r-rather be at the- the dentist than here."

Kyle smiled widely. "Yeah. I'd rather be back at home hearing Cartman making fun of Jews again." He thought again. "Know what I'd like to do? Go home and hug Ike. Just hug him and tell him I'm happy he's my brother. Then I wanna spend the rest of the night reading to him and playing with him. He loves it when we read together."

Stan thought sadly. "I wanna read- with my mom too. We always do, ev- every Tuesday and Thursday."

"I want to go home and shoot some baskets."

"Uh-huh. And throw- throw the football around, and- and bike. And play baseball. And video games."

"I wouldn't say no to some chores either. I'd be more than happy to help my dad wash the car," Kyle said.

"I can't wait to- to take out the garbage again," Stan said wishfully.

"You're telling me." The boys were able to stay awake by talking throughout the night, although Kyle had to shake Stan here and there to stop him from nodding off. He knew he might fall unconscious and not wake up if he fell asleep. They were finally too tired to talk anymore so they just tried to stay awake, which was difficult for Kyle to do since he had to make sure both he and Stan were awake. Kyle sat against the wall while Stan continued to lie down, still in the blanket. Stan was still breathing, even though it was irregular, but at least he was still breathing. Kyle sighed as he took out his water bottle- hardly anything was left in it. He wished it had rained that day now, then he'd have some refreshment. He felt so weak… he was doing all he could to stay strong for Stan because he needed it, but truth be told, he was afraid something would soon happen too.

Voices were heard in the distance. Kyle shook his head and saw bright light- and two men outside the cave.

"What?"

"We found them! It's them! It's the boys!" one of the men called, apparently telling someone behind him.

Kyle rubbed his eyes and saw that it was morning. Oh no! He fell asleep! He quickly turned to Stan who was also asleep. "Stan? Stan?"

"Don't worry boys, you're going to be alright," spoke a blonde rescue worker.

"You hear that Stan? Stan? We're saved!"

"There's a helicopter waiting to take you boys to the hospital. You're going to be okay," said the other man.

Together the men had brought forth a stretcher. Kyle scooted aside. "Take Stan first, he needs help. He has asthma and broke out in hives yesterday."

"Are you sure?"

"Do it!"

Thankfully Stan opened his eyes at that moment, slightly. _He was awake…_

"Stan, help arrived! I told you! I told you!" Kyle couldn't help but expel his excitement, not for himself but for his friend. His super best friend was finally going to get help.

Kyle could tell Stan thought he was dreaming as the two men loaded him onto a stretcher and carried him off to a waiting helicopter in a clearing of the woods. A third man stayed by Kyle to make sure he was going to be okay while another helicopter arrived to take him. Stan blinked confused eyes as a paramedic worked on him on the flight to the hospital.

"Am I- d-d-dreaming?" Stan struggled to say with the mask over his face.

The pretty woman smiled down at him. "You aren't. Rescue workers found you. You kids are going to be alright."

Alright… this horrible ordeal was finally going to be over. Stan was on his way to the hospital and for once, he couldn't be happier. Sharon almost collapsed in her chair once the police told her the boys were found alive. Thankfully all of their belongings were already packed up and they were able to drive to Denver Children's Hospital, the closest and best care for the boys. Sheila was too shocked to find out Kyle had been found too that she stopped eying Sharon like a hawk and her and Gerald made the long ride to their son as well.

Later that night Kyle opened his eyes. He found out he was in a hospital bed hooked up to an IV and vital monitors. Also, his parents were looking down at him.

"Mom? Dad?"

"Oh bubbe!" Sheila shrieked and hugged him.

"How do you feel Kyle?" Gerald asked worriedly.

"I feel fine actually. How's Stan?"

"The doctors said you were pretty dehydrated. All you've had was water the past few days."

"I'm fine, really. A lot better than how I was. How's Stan?" he asked again.

They shared a look. "We haven't seen him yet, but I'm sure he's fine," Sheila told her son.

Kyle looked angry now. "He was suffering from a pretty bad case of hives and was having an asthma attack. I don't think he's 'fine.'"

Gerald sighed. "We'll find Sharon and Randy and talk to them okay?"

"Please."

Sheila looked startled. "What? Now?"

"Yes now! I won't be able to sleep until I know how he is!"

Gerald nodded out. "C'mon, let's go Sheila…"

"But Kyle, you"-

"I'm fine. And I'll be even better tomorrow and when I know how my best friend is doing!" he cried.

Regretfully, Sheila followed her husband out and went to find the Marshes. Currently, Sharon and Randy were staring down at their son who was sleeping in his hospital bed, surrounded by three IV bags and vital monitors with a tube down his throat. His face had swelled up so much by the time he was brought in that he had to be intubated in order to get air into his lungs quickly. They didn't say anything for a while. Sharon just gulped and dabbed at wet eyes.

"That's him alright, that's our son," Randy told her, arm around her.

"I still can't believe they found him. And he's alive. Oh Randy, we are so lucky, so so lucky."

Sharon brushed back the bangs on Stan's face, just to see the scar on his hairline. "My baby, oh my baby boy…"

"C'mon, we can see him tomorrow when he's awake."

"I just want to hug him Randy."

"You can do that tomorrow. Let's go…"

She planted a kiss on her son's face before leaving. They found the Broflovskis outside the door waiting for them.

"Kyle- we just wanted to know how Stanley's doing," Gerald asked them.

"He'll be okay. He- he sort of freaked us out, his face began to swell but, they got a tube down his throat and, he'll be fine soon enough," Randy answered.

"How's Kyle?" Sharon asked.

"He's fine. After he gets some more nourishment he'll be fit to go home," Gerald told them. He looked at his wife. She glared at him before sighing.

"Sorry for blaming you two for what happened," she said. "The boys- the boys were found and are alive, that's what matters most."

The Marshes looked a little surprised at what she had said but grateful nonetheless.

"We're sorry we lost your son," Sharon said.

"You didn't, the boys went off on their own," Gerald told her.

"I know but it still feels like my fault. We were in charge," Sharon said heavily.

"We'll know what really happened when the boys are able to speak," Randy said.

They said their good-byes and went to the nearest motel by the hospital so they could be close to the boys. Two days had passed. Kyle was feeling better than ever and was released from the hospital with a strict diet and medication to take due to the lost of nutrients over the three and a half days he was missing. Kyle could care less about that now; he was able to visit Stan who was several doors away from him. He walked into his room and ran to his bed.

"Hey dude," Kyle smiled.

"Hey," Stan replied. The tube down his throat had been removed hours ago. His throat was very soar.

Kyle suddenly didn't know what to tell him. He just rolled his eyes. "Why does it feel like I was by your hospital bed, only months ago for this very reason?"

Stan grinned. "Because you were."

"Dude, I thought you told me you weren't going to have what happened in February happen again."

Stan shrugged. "Sorry. I thought so too."

"Know when you're going to be released?"

"Couple of days I think. I hope. I still want my KFC."

Kyle laughed. "Yeah."

"Know how- we were found?"

"No. I'll ask though."

Stan coughed. "Good."

"Maybe I should visit later," Kyle frowned.

"No! Don't leave me!"

Kyle looked at him confused.

"My parents said Shelley was going to see me. _Shelley_. I need witnesses- to my murder."

Kyle laughed again. "Alright, I won't leave."

Shelley did come in time later. She glared at Kyle when she saw him.

"What are _you_ doing here?" she ordered.

"Stan's my best friend," Kyle answered.

"Well he's my brother so I have more rights." She pushed Kyle away.

"Why do you care? You hate him!"

"LEAVE!"

Kyle glared at the fourteen-year-old but left. Stan blinked his eyes at his sister, wondering what she was doing there. She sighed so heavily it was more like a groan.

"I'm only here because Mom and Dad made me," Shelley told him.

"Figured."

"I'm glad you're not dead."

"Huh?"

"You heard me!" she yelled, taking hold of his hospital shirt and bringing him close. She pushed him violently back down and left.

Two days later had Kyle and his parents and Sharon and Randy around Stan's hospital bed, telling him just what happened.

"We were getting real fed up with the rescues workers' excuses for not looking more because of the rain," Sharon said angrily.

"Finally they were convinced to search first thing the next morning," Sheila said.

"Your mother told them to look again by Passive Cave since we figured that's where you were," Randy explained. "They only looked there the first day, and not very well."

"Where were you boys this whole time? Were you at the cave?" Sharon asked.

Stan and Kyle shared a look. "Well, we _were_ trying to find it," Stan began, biting his lip. "In the middle of the night. We found one cave, but it was the wrong one."

"The compass we had wasn't working and it began to rain so we figured we'd head back to camp in the morning," Kyle said.

"Thing was, we didn't know where to go. Without a compass and a wet map, we were screwed," Stan shrugged.

"So we just walked on and on, trying to find someone but never did. We barely saw any animals too, we were pretty alone alright."

"It was hard traveling, with no food and wet clothes and blankets."

"But on the morning of the fourth day, we saw the rescue workers, and, well, were rescued," Kyle concluded.

Sharon shook her head. "I still cannot believe this happened. I-I really thought you two were gone forever this time."

Stan bowed his head guiltily. "I'm sorry I made you worry Mom. Really."

Sharon sighed and took hold of one of his hands and kissed it. "I'm just glad you were found."

"So, are we still in trouble…?" Kyle had to ask.

Their parents all looked at one another.

"I think, this time, since you had us worried more than ever before, no," Sharon said clearly.

"Really?" Stan beamed.

"Even me?" Kyle looked to his parents.

Gerald answered before Sheila could. "Even you Kyle."

"Sweet," he and Stan said at the same time.

The next day Stan was released from the hospital. Even though the boys did have a great time at Lake Cherry Wood, they were even more excited to go back to the dull life of South Park. Back to chores, snow, and even Cartman. They were still young; they could come up with their own adventures in a less threatening way. Although Stan still did want to try his hand at huge rapids river rafting, much to Kyle's chagrin.

**End**

_I hope you liked the fic. Thanks for the reviews! Made me very happy indeed. Please tell me what you thought over-all! More SP fics coming! _

_Magical love: Rose, June 8, 2010_


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